


Keith is dying again

by Immiams



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst?, Fluff, Keith is dying, Lance Helps, M/M, Sickfic, he tries his best though, keith doesn't know how to take care of himself, klance, lance the nurse, not really - Freeform, sick keith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-08-29 03:39:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16736391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Immiams/pseuds/Immiams
Summary: “They kept offering us food..”Lance raises his eyebrows in outrage. “You took food from a bunch of random alien strangers?”“They seemed disappointed when I refused so…”Pidge, who had been relatively quiet for the last hour, finally spoke up. “Man you were pretty much asking for this.” She teases.Keith glares at her halfheartedly. The evident exhaustion in the feisty paladin’s demeanour takes out most of the bite.





	Keith is dying again

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a random sick fic that I've had sitting in my notes for like 3 months. Enjoy!

Keith is leaning heavily against the wall of the training deck when Lance enters. The blue paladin appears chipper as ever at this time in the morning and Keith deeply envies him. He tries not to come off too obvious as he straightens his posture and attempts to relax his tight shoulders. He’s sure that all this manages to do is cause his stomach to clench further and it’s all he can do not to groan at the new wave of discomfort. Fortunately, Lance is even more oblivious than he looks and doesn’t even look twice.

“You ready to get your ass kicked, Mullet?” The cocky boy asks as he saunters over to where Keith is standing. He rolls his sleeves up casually along the way.

Keith knows for a fact that he’s going to get his ass kicked today. Actually, he’s not really sure why he’s following through with this at all after the morning he’s had, but at the same time part of him is absolutely not willing to back down from Lance’s request. Even if it is the smarter option. He guessed it was curiosity that had brought him here. When Lance had asked him the day before if he wanted to spar with him this morning, Keith had been hesitant. He never knew what Lance was up to and he was not willing to walk into another one of Lance’s stupid pranks. Lance had seemed sincere with his request though and Keith was always up for more training. Having another person to spar with would be more advantageous than his usual programmed robotic opponent too. He’d actually been looking forward to the event up until he got out of bed this morning.

He could tell right away that something had been off this morning and as he continued to push through the discomfort of his unsettled stomach, he’d found himself constantly considering bailing on his teammate. Unfortunately, he was too stubborn to cancel on Lance and so that’s how he found himself here, barely able to stand, in the middle of the training deck with an incredibly painful feeling in his stomach. 

They discussed the exercises for a few minutes, which gave Keith time to get his shit together enough for him to actually stand a chance against Lance. They’d decided on hand-to-hand combat first which Keith thought was a good idea, seeing as Lance was severely lacking in that department due to his long ranged bayard. On any other day Keith would have Lance pinned to the ground in seconds during a drill like this, but as they made their way to the centre of the training deck Keith found himself strongly doubting that would be true today.

“Okay.” Keith commands, raising his arms in defence. “Try and hit me.”

Lance smirks before quickly swiping his elbow up toward Keith’s chin. The red paladin somehow manages to block the attack and he finds himself gain a minute amount of confidence along with the victory. He still feels like shit, there’s no doubting that, but the adrenaline that comes with fighting is enough to at least get him moving. 

He blocks the next two attacks but is caught off guard by the third. He takes a stifled hit to the shoulder which is just enough for him to temporarily lose his balance. Lance ceases the opportunity to take him down and within seconds the blue paladin is sitting on top of him. Lance has a smug look on his face that just screams victory as he stares down at a defeated Keith. Usually the red paladin would be revelling at the position the pair had found themselves in, Lance sitting on top of Keith’s chest, leaning over him with those dark blue eyes, but right now all Keith feels is the weight of Lance’s body pushing down on his uneasy stomach and he really wants him to get off.

“That’s one victory for Lance, zero for Keith.” The other boy announces, before stepping off of his opponent and preparing for round two.

Keith rolls his eyes, ignoring the discomfort in his abdomen. “I was going easy on you.” He taunts, lifting himself off of the ground and getting into position. “You’ll be lucky to even get a hit in this time.”

who was he kidding?

Lance raises an eyebrow at the challenge. “Oh, really?” He asks accusingly. “We’ll see about that.”

They did see about that. Two hits in and Keith was on his ass again. This time Lance seemed to pick up on Keith’s strange behaviour but he didn’t say anything. He offered him a hand getting up and regarded his teammate carefully.

Three easy victories later and Lance started to become suspicious. Keith could tell he was pulling his punches but somehow the blue paladin still came out on top. “Are you sure you’re feeling okay? I shouldn’t be taking you down this easy.” Lance asks cautiously as he hauls his teammate off the ground once again.

Keith does his best to stifle a grunt as he’s yanked to his feet. “I’m fine.” He replies as casually as he can manage. Throughout the duration of their sparring session Keith had started feeling more and more unwell and he was finding it hard to hide the fact that he was feeling off. He wonders what it was that had caused him to feel so run-down all of a sudden. He probably shouldn’t be engaging in physical activity when he’s feeling this way but there’s no backing out now. “Just not warmed up yet.”

Lance seems unconvinced but Keith quickly goes on the offensive in order to distract him and avoid any further questions. Lance barely reacts in time but after a while the red paladin is on his ass again.

They continue like this for over an hour, switching between different exercises as the time passes. During this time Keith’s condition only worsens and he finds himself having to brush off Lance’s concerns more often as he keeps ending up on the ground. Finally, Lance suggests that they finish up, saying that he’s bored of fighting such an inferior opponent. Keith is pretty sure that it’s a lie seeing as Lance has mentioned on several accounts that he could kick Keith’s ass all day but for once he decides to give in. By now all he wants to do is go and lie down somewhere comfortable or throw up in a toilet. He’s unsure of which one he’d prefer at the moment but judging by the way his stomach feels like its being stabbed repeatedly from the inside, he fears it may be the latter.

Only when they finish packing up all the equipment does Keith start to worry about whether or not he’s going to manage to make it back to his room on his own. He can feel himself swaying a little and the pain is getting so bad that all he wants to do is curl into the foetal position and lay on the cool floor. He considers this briefly before he realises he has company. Lance is looking at him like he’s just grown another head.

The blue paladin takes a timid step forward. “Keith, you look like you’re gonna be sick. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Keith lies, he takes a step backward. “I’m fine.” He turns his head away in an attempt to hide his face but when he does, the room seems to tilt and he has to blink a few times to get things back to normal. Only… now there are dark spots clouding his vision.

He vaguely hears Lance talking but none of it makes any sense to him. As the dark spots spread further he gets a weightless feeling in his head and it’s then that he realises what’s happening. He reaches forward, searching for Lance’s hand so that he can keep himself upright. His hand catches on something solid but he can’t really tell what it is. He hears Lance say his name.

“Lance I-” He can barely hear his own voice but he does feel Lance’s fingers tighten around his hand. The red paladin’s knees buckle underneath him and all he can feel is the sensation of falling until something slams into him and suddenly everything disappears.

 

***

 

All of his senses come back in a rush. It’s like speeding through a tunnel at a hundred miles an hour. He can hear a panicked voice saying his name, two hands grasping at his weak arms and when he opens his eyes everything is way too bright. He squeezes them shut, wincing at the intense light.

“Hey. Hey you’re okay.” Lance reassures. Keith feels a hand brush against his forehead, pushing the hair off of his face. He tries to open his eyes again, slower this time, and is met with the concerned face of his teammate. 

Lance’s expression morphs into one of relief as Keith blinks up at him in confusion. He takes his hand away from Keith’s face and rests it supportively against his arm.

Keith reluctantly lifts his head, which was resting comfortably on Lance’s shoulder, and takes a moment to look around in an attempt to find his bearings. Somehow he’d ended up in Lance’s lap with his back resting against the other boy’s propped up thigh. They’re still on the training deck, exactly where they’d been before.

“What happened?” Keith asks, returning his gaze toward Lance’s still-concerned face. 

The blue paladin looks like he’s just seen a ghost, he’s that shaken. “Well, you kind of just fainted. I barely managed to catch you before you hit the ground.” 

He does vaguely remember something slamming into him before everything blacked out. That must have been Lance. 

Keith doesn’t get the chance to reply. Suddenly he gets an overwhelming feeling of pain as his body seems to catch up with whatever’s going on in his stomach. He automatically doubles over, clutching at the affected area. Lance jumps slightly at the sudden reaction and Keith finds himself rolling onto the floor. He takes the opportunity to curl in on himself, waiting out the wave of nausea.

“Wha- Keith!” Lance’s voice is panicked again. Keith feels him trying to lift him off the ground and he instantly feels another excruciating pain as Lance moves him. Keith shouts in protest and Lance nearly drops him. “God, Keith you’re freaking me out! Whats wrong with you?”

Keith can’t reply through his tightly gritted teeth. He does reach for Lance’s hand, though and when he finds it he squeezes. Lance holds onto his hand in relative silence until the pain slightly dissipates and he can open his eyes without tears forming. “I don’t know what’s wrong but it HURTS.” He explains. If he thought Lance looked concerned before, now he was terrified.

“Okay.” Lance’s hand is on his shoulder again, rubbing up and down in a way that is strangely comforting. “You’re not gonna be sick are you?”

Keith nods slowly.

“Yes, as in you are going to be sick?” 

Keith nods again.

“Shit!” Lance’s hand leaves his side and Keith hears fast footsteps getting further away, then a whole lot of rummaging, then Lance is lifting him into a sitting position. Keith whines in protest but when Lance leans him over a large bucket he feels a little better. Keith doesn’t let go of the other boy’s arm, he’s holding it in a death grip for reassurance. Lance doesn’t complain, he only pulls Keith’s hair back when he looks like he’s going to throw up.

The red paladin tries to hold back. He doesn’t want to throw up, doesn’t want to lose control of his body like that, but it’s difficult to hold and eventually he runs out of options. Once it starts it doesn’t stop and it’s an absolutely horrible experience. The bile burns at his throat, bringing tears to his eyes and he’s so weak that he can barely even hold himself up. 

Lance keeps one hand in his hair, holding it back, while Keith still has the other clutched in his hand. He knows he should feel embarrassed right now but for the moment he’s too distressed to care, he just wants to not feel bad anymore.

***

Lance doesn’t think he’s ever seen anyone so sick in his life. He’s lived in a house full of sick, vomiting kids before but they didn’t get nearly this bad. Keith only seemed to have a few seconds of relief before he was pitching forward again. It was like an endless cycle. While Lance tries his best to keep him comfortable, he knows that he can’t help Keith here on his own. He needs help.

They stay as they are for a few more minutes until Keith hits a lull in bouts of puking. As soon as he’s no longer doubled over in pain, Lance makes a dash for the communication board on the wall of the training deck. He hits a few buttons before speaking urgently into the microphone as the other boy tries to catch his breath. “If anyone’s hearing this right now, I need support on the training deck immediately. Bring a bucket if you can.”

There’s a moment of silence and then another voice can be heard over the speaker. “Lance, Shiro’s on his way. What’s wrong?”

Lance sighs in relief. Shiro will know exactly what to do. 

He looks back over his shoulder at a very dazed Keith. The guy’s so pale that he’s almost translucent and he looks like he’s about to tip over. “Keith’s in bad shape, Allura. I don’t know what’s wrong with him. One minute he was fine, then he just fainted and now he’s vomiting. Like…a lot.”

“Oh dear.” Allura replies. “We’ll set up a space in the med bay for him. Tell Shiro to get him there as soon as he can.”

“Okay, thanks. I’ll see you in-“ He’s interrupted by Keith retching for the umpteenth time today and doesn’t even hesitate to run over to his sick teammate. Keith has both his arms and his legs wrapped around the waste bucket like he’s holding on for dear life. It would be funny if Lance weren’t so concerned. He’s shaking too, Lance can feel it when he places a steady hand on his back. He’s hit with the desire to pull Keith into tight hug and stroke his hair until he stops shivering but he reserves himself.

Fortunately Shiro runs in right then with a bucket in his hand. Thank god because the first bucket was getting pretty full, Lance noticed in horror. If Keith kept this pace up he’d be dehydrated in a matter of minutes. “Keith?” Shiro asks in shock when he notices the pair of them. Lance isn’t sure what the older paladin had been expecting when he ran in but it obviously hadn’t been this.

He quickly crouches on the other side of the red paladin and looks to Lance for some kind of explanation. Lance shrugs. “He was fine a few minutes ago, maybe a little unsteady, then he fainted and now this.” He repeats what he’d told Allura. They both look to their sick friend in concern.

Keith, who has spent the last five or so minutes hanging over the rim of a bucket, somehow finds the strength to wipe at his pale face with the collar of his shirt. He looks exhausted and slightly lost as he turns to Shiro, blinking at him slowly. 

“Allura said to take him to the med bay. She’s prepping it for him now.” Lance offers, recognising Keith’s lack of puking as an opportunity to move him. 

Shiro nods in understanding. “Alright. Come on, buddy.” He says, scooping Keith into his arms in one swift motion. Keith actually whimpers at the sudden movement and it’s heartbreaking enough to make Lance wince. “Lance. Can you grab the bucket for me? Just in case.” Lance picks up the second, empty bucket and follows Shiro and a limp Keith out of the room.

***

The team spends the next hour or so huddled in the med bay, fussing over their sick teammate. Poor Keith has been prodded and interrogated by Allura and Coran, all while his body continues to purge itself of any kind of nutrients. They tried to get him to drink some water before because he was becoming seriously dehydrated from all the vomiting but he just threw that up too. Eventually they gave up on that and hooked him up to an IV, hoping to get some fluids into him that way. The cord lays idly beside him, the end hooked into the back of his shaky hand.

“I can’t be sure, but I’d say its most likely some kind of food poisoning.” Allura concludes after she’s run out of tests to try on the sick teen. “We’ve taken blood samples so Coran will be sure to look into them and make sure its not anything lethal but for now we’ll just have to wait.”

“Food poisoning?” Hunk asks from where he’s seated on the edge of Keith’s bed. “It can’t be, none of the rest of us are sick and we’ve all been eating the same food.”

Keith shakes his head, which is currently leaning on Hunk’s shoulder. Hunk had initially moved next to Keith to hold his hair back as he puked but he didn’t seem to mind being used as a human pillow now. He even had his arm wrapped around his teammate for comfort. “The planet we visited yesterday-“ Keith has to stop for a moment to compose himself. He presses a hand against his forehead and closes his eyes. “They kept offering us food..”

Lance raises his eyebrows in outrage. “You took food from a bunch of random alien strangers?”

“They seemed disappointed when I refused so…”

Pidge, who had been relatively quiet for the last hour, finally spoke up. “Man you were pretty much asking for this.” She teases.

Keith glares at her halfheartedly. The evident exhaustion in the feisty paladin’s demeanour takes out most of the bite.

Coran walks in again with a concoction of pills for Keith and a water pouch which everyone eyes warily after the last attempt at getting Keith to drink something. He moves the sick bucket off of the bed and places it on the floor before dropping the coloured pills on the bed’s clean sheets over Keith’s lap. “These should help settle your stomach and ease any discomfort you’re feeling.” He says before handing the water pouch over to Hunk who holds onto it for his teammate. “They should last a few dobashes.”

Keith barely has time to thank him before the Altean is whisking the half full wastebasket out of the med bay. Lance spends the next few minutes half expecting Keith to throw the pills back up but miraculously he manages to keep them down. Lance listens to Shiro and Allura as they discuss the order of the shifts for who will watch over Keith and when. He can hear Hunk and Keith chattering quietly a few metres away as Hunk settles the smaller boy more comfortably onto the bed. 

“I’ll take the first shift.” Allura announces. “The rest of you should go get some lunch.”

Lance cringes at the thought of eating anything after what he’s just witnessed. 

Apparently Pidge feels the same. “space goo? After watching that display? I’m not even going to be able to stomach dinner tonight.”

Hunk comes up beside them, joining in on the conversation. “What if I cook something different? I don’t really feel like goo either.”

“Hmmm.. tempting.” Pidge mutters.

“Come on, we’ll discuss this somewhere else.” Lance announces.

As the four paladins exit the room, Allura makes her way back to check over the fifth. Lance glances over his shoulder to get one last look at his sick teammate. Keith is on his side, arms wrapped protectively around his middle. He watches Lance through half-lidded eyes. 

Lance smirks, lifting his hand and waving sheepishly. Keith smiles for what Lance believes is the first time that day. He waves back, barely moving his hand from its original position. He looks a little less stressed now which is good, but Lance wishes he could find a way to make him feel more comfortable.

***

Lance’s babysitting shift ends up being late into the night. He’s not even sure how he ended up getting this time slot but he’s sure that whatever system was used, it was rigged from the very beginning. So he stumbles into the medway at around 11pm space-time. He gives Hunk a nudge on his way out and the yellow paladin offers a tired smirk. 

The med-bay is eerily quiet when he enters. It’s very different now than it had been hours before when the whole team had been in here. He gets a chill as he walks further into the room which he’s sure is not from the air conditioning being too cold.

Keith doesn’t make a sound when he walks in which leads Lance to believe that he’s asleep. When he gets a little closer he notices that his eyes are closed so this must be true. He also notices that Keith’s arms are still tightly folded over his stomach. His face is scrunched up in what Lance could only describe as a grimace because he’s too busy trying to convince himself that it’s not cute. Lance moves closer and carefully lifts the sleeping boy’s thin blankets over his shoulders so that he won’t get cold. He then makes his way to the next bed so that he can sit down -because for some godforsaken reason no one thought it would be a good idea to bring a seat in here- but somehow manages to bang his knee into the bed in the process.

He tries to stay quiet but the “Ow fuck.” that falls out of his mouth turns out to be a little louder than he’d expected. He rubs his knee more out of annoyance than pain.

“Lance- What’re you doing?”

When Lance turns around he’s met with a highly amused-looking Keith who quirks an eyebrow at him in question.

“Sorry.” Lance mutters, making his way back toward the red paladin now that he’d disrupted the peace. “I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

Keith sighs defeatedly. “It’s alright. I was already awake.” He rolls onto his back so that he can look directly at his teammate.

“Oh really?” Lance asks. He’s not buying it at all.

“Shiro comes in and harasses me if he finds me awake.” Keith explains truthfully. “I was just pretending because I thought you were Shiro.”

“If Shiro keeps coming in and harassing you then why don’t you actually get some sleep instead of pretending?”

Keith shrugs. “I would if I wasn’t so uncomfortable.”

Lance frowns at the exhausted look that Keith gives him. “Coran’s meds aren’t helping?”

“They are but they aren’t.” Keith shrugs.

“That sucks.” Lance replies. “Anything I can do to help?”

Keith closes his eyes and sighs in exhaustion. “You could throw me out the airlock so I can at least die in peace.”

Lance chuckles at the morbidity of that. “No offence to your logic or whatever but I’m pretty sure suffocation is the opposite definition of a peaceful death.”

Keith seems to open his eyes only so he can roll them. 

“So if you haven’t actually been sleeping this whole time.” Lance says. “What have you been doing?”

Keith frowns. “Well Hunk just told me his whole life story during his watch. And before that was Pidge who totally would have snitched if she found out I was awake so I literally just laid here bored out of my mind.”

Lance’s eyebrows furrow as he glances around the room in search of some form of entertainment. There was literally nothing in here apart from a couple of metal beds and some scanners.

He turns back to Keith who is watching him expectantly.

“You wanna go to the movie room?” He asks.

Keith’s eyes widen and he looks around the room like he’d just been caught red handed. “I’m under strict orders not to leave this bed.” He replies with uncertainty.

Lance leans in closer and whispers. “Shiro doesn’t have to find out.”

Keith chews on his bottom lip for a moment, obviously calculating the risks and rewards of sneaking out.

“Okay.” He replies, slowly pushing himself into a sitting position. He grunts with the effort and Lance places a steady hand against his arm to help him. “But if Shiro finds out then this was all your idea.” He confirms.

Lance grins. “Shiro won’t find out.” He reaches for Keith’s blanket and wraps it around the shorter boy’s shoulders before helping him up. Keith sways a little but eventually finds his balance. Lance tucks Keith’s pillow under his arm incase he wants it and gently guides him to the movie room.

—

Lance puts a random movie in the Altean version of a DVD player and goes back to the couch where Keith is already settled. The red paladin is still miserable but Lance thinks he looks a little less miserable now that he’s not shut away in the med bay. He’s all wrapped up in his blanket with his socked feet folded underneath him on the couch. Lance can’t help but think he looks adorable and extremely cuddly in his current state. Even his grumpy pout is endearing.

Lance flops down next to him on the small couch and they both watch in comfortable silence as the movie begins.

Lance spends the first ten minutes trying to understand what the hell is going on plot-wise in the movie before giving up. He looks over at Keith who is still watching with a perplexed expression.

Lance laughs. “You got any idea what’s going on?” He asks.

Keith turns his attention toward Lance, looking amused. “I think her family just died in an explosion.” He replies, turning back toward the screen. “Either that or they were just setting off fireworks. The special effects are terrible.”

Lance chuckles at that. “I don’t even know why we bothered.”

“It’s still better than waiting around in the med bay.” Keith shrugs.

They lapse into silence again as the action in the movie picks back up. Lance tries to wrap his head around what’s happening on the screen when Keith speaks up. 

“Im sorry if I freaked you out this morning.” He says quietly. “I shouldn’t have lied about how I was feeling.”

Lance looks over at him. Keith’s eyes are dark in the low lights of the movie room but they don’t hide his sincerity. He seems properly apologetic. “It’s alright. I could tell something was up anyway.” Lance replies reassuringly. “Honestly when I threw you on your ass the first time, I knew. There’s no way I could’ve beaten you at combat unless you were literally dying.”

Keith grins cockily. “That’s true.” He says turning back toward the movie.

Lance huffs light heartedly. “Having said that.. Next time you’re feeling shitty you should let me know. I’m not that much of an asshole y’know. If something’s wrong I’ll help you out.”

“I know. I just.. I’m not used to asking for help.” The other boy smiles awkwardly “It’s nothing against you. I’m just weird about that stuff.”

Lance nods in understanding. They lapse into silence again. Only, this time, Keith seems tense. Lance doesn’t say anything, not wanting to make him more uncomfortable and they stay in the anxious quiet for a while before Keith turns to him again.

Keith opens his mouth intending to say something but quickly stops himself. He frowns, looking thoughtful before trying again. “I guess what I’m trying to say is… Thank you. For looking out for me.” and then he smiles, obviously relieved to get that off his chest.

Lance feels his insides go soft and he nearly melts under Keith’s soft smile. This boy was going to be the death of him with his cute little smile and that dark tousled hair and the way his cheeks flushed when he was shy and just everything else that made Lance’s poor heart race with exhilaration. 

Lance decides to take a chance. He shuffles a little closer to Keith on the couch until their hips are nearly touching. Then he tugs at Keith’s blanket until the other boy lets go of it, allowing Lance to arrange the object more comfortably over the both of them. “You’re welcome.” 

When he’s satisfied with their position he turns to Keith to gage his reaction. Keith is blushing. His eyes scan Lance curiously as he seems to consider just exactly what Lance is doing. 

The taller boy’s eyes widen when Keith’s head dips a little. Keith keeps his eyes on Lance, watching him cautiously as he lays his head on his shoulder. He readjusts himself until he’s pressed comfortably against Lance’s side.

Now Lance is the one blushing profusely. His cheeks burn with intense heat as he takes note of how warm Keith feels against him. It’s nice. He feels nice.

Lance wraps his arm around the smaller paladin in one last show of bravery and is satisfied when Keith snuggles closer. He focusses on the movie in front of them as he wills his heart to calm down. 

It only really gets to it’s usual pace when he realises Keith is already asleep. Lance calms down quickly after that, knowing that he doesn’t have to hide his heavy blush or racing heart from Keith now that he’s dozing on his shoulder. He feels his body relax into all of the places where Keith is leaning into him and finally lets himself feel content.

-

Lance wakes in a tangle of limbs. His eyebrows scrunch together in confusion as he blindly tries to figure out where he is. Something shifts against him and Lance does everything in his power to stop himself from jumping out of his skin. 

When he finally opens his eyes and takes a good look at where he is, his body goes rigid. He doesn’t dare move in the fear that any kind of movement will wake the boy napping on his chest.

His lips melt into an adoring smile as he regards Keith. The boy’s face is squished against Lance’s chest, bangs falling over his eyes, arms sprawled over Lance’s torso in a mess. He’s snoring quietly, the sound reaching Lance’s ears and swirling in his chest. 

Lance becomes aware of the fact that this cute boy sprawled on top of him might actually murder him when he realises they both fell asleep on the couch. Especially because now the castle lights are slowly growing brighter, meaning that it’s already morning.

Shit…

Things only get worse when he hears footsteps by the doorway. Lance feels a sudden urge to shove his teammate off the couch and run but finds that he doesn’t have the heart to do that.

He wipes his eyes, squinting toward the doorway as the intruder appears. It’s Shiro. The older paladin surprisingly doesn’t scold them when he finds them, nor does he look at all shocked that they were there in the first place. Perhaps he’d checked up on Keith in the middle of the night and found them here.

“How’s he doing?” Shiro asks casually as he saunters into the room and perchs himself on the arm of the couch.

“Uhhh.. He said he was feeling better before, and he’s actually sleeping now so that’s good.” Lance replies. He places the back of his hand gently across Keith’s forehead, careful not to wake him. “He still feels warm.”

“I think he’ll be fine. He just needs to eat something and get some more rest.” Shiro replies, nodding his head as if he’s agreeing with himself. “Speaking of, I’m gonna go get some breakfast, I’ll see you both there.”

Then his easy smile cracks into a shit eating grin and he winks at Lance in amusement before swiftly turning and striding out of the room. Lance blushes hard and he’s glad no one’s there to see it.

That brings his attention back to Keith. He doesn’t want to wake him. Firstly, because he looks so damn cute like this. Secondly, because Lance doesn’t particularly want to be attacked when Keith does wake up. Thirdly, Lance has no idea how to do that without making things awkward. Unfortunately, he doesn’t really get a chance to consider his options.

Hunk’s large frame appears in the doorway, peering curiously at the situation on the couch. His eyes light up in amusement and he wiggles his eyebrows suggestively at an extremely embarrassed blue paladin.

“Hunk!” Lance scolds a little too loudly, causing Keith to stir. Lance watches in anticipation as Keith blinks his eyes open, glances toward the door, tenses, stares at Lance’s chest where his head is still resting, glances toward the door again and then finally shoves himself up and away from Lance.

He stares at Lance, eyes wide with embarrassment as he seems to realise what is going on. Lance hears Hunk chuckle by the doorway and when he tries to scowl at him he notices that the larger boy has already left.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”

“It’s okay. It’s not like I disliked it.” Wow nice one Lance. You sound like a creep.

Keith blushes. ‘I didn’t dislike it either.”

“Oh” Now Lance is blushing even harder. “Maybe we should do this again some time. When you’re not sick and feeling like shit.”

Keith’s shy smile says it all. “I’d like that.”

“Me too.”


End file.
